Valentines Day road trip report

[thatbaldwinlife]

My wife and I have committed to camping every month this year and with the addition of the Espar gas heater, the winter months are a bit more comfortable. For February we decided that Valentines Day weekend would make a great getaway and with Monday being a holiday, our youngest do not have school so they can sleep in. We do not have to be there to make sure they get off to school. The redwoods in northern Cali are some of our favorite places to visit, particularly the Avenue of the Giants. We made a reservation at Burlington Campground for Friday night and headed south as soon as the twins got off to school.

Day one:
Of course my wife has not been sick for a long time and on Friday morning, she woke up not feeling so good. She wanted to drive the first leg down I5 to get her part done so she could rest and have me take over. Not a lot of pics from the first day just making miles. We knocked out 460 miles in one day which is a record for us in the Westy. We usually only do 250 or so per day traveling as we stop so much to explore.
Coffee stop in Grants Pass

We took I5->199->101 which we have done many, many times. Traffic was pretty light until we got to Eureka during rush hour and hit every red light on 101. We arrived at Burlington around 6:00 that night and set up in the dark which consisted of popping the top and a cold beer. We started to make dinner as we were both pretty hungry from the long drive. After dinner we both read a for a bit then went to bed pretty early as my wife wasn't feeling all that well.
Hopefully tomorrow would be a bit better for her.


Day two:
It was neat to see what the campground looked like in the light of the morning. It was pretty empty overall and surrounding us were redwoods as far as you could see. These were not the giant ones we would see later in the day, but still impressive. We made coffee and ate leftovers from last nights dinner for breakfast. My wife was feeling about the same as yesterday so some of our hiking we planned on doing was out of the question. No problem, gives us a reason to come back (like we needed one). After breakfast, I spent some time adjusting the sliding door as it had popped open a few times on the way down. It would not be the last time on the trip though.

We packed up and left the campground around 9:00am and headed south on Hwy 254 and only made it about 1/2 mile before we pulled over to do a short walk. I will let the pics do the talking here.

Link


We continued on south to Miranda where we would make lunch and get fuel before doing more exploring. It is important to note that we were very lucky to have gotten gas as the route we took after we left 254 was basically without fuel for for some time.

We stopped by the Founders Grove and walked a bit more as this was one place we had actually not stopped in the past because it can be pretty busy during the summer. It was nice being there in February as the road was almost empty. The weather was great as well being sunny and 50 degrees.

I've always wanted to visit the Lost Coast of California. It seemed so hard to get to and so out there. We almost did during a Westy trip in 2015 but the kids (and wife) didn't appreciate the bumpy, steep road leaving Ferndale so we turned around just a few miles in. Now without the kids and my wife who has had 5 years of us dragging the Westy down crappy roads, we had the perfect opportunity . We left 101 and took Bull Creek Flat/Mattole road out towards Honeydew. The road starts out like any other 1 1/2 lane forest road but becomes steeper and less maintained as you head west. We climbed in 2nd gear for a long time on pothole filled roads with the worst repair jobs we have ever seen.
A gravel road would have been welcome over this. Lots of square edged hits, deep pot holes followed by horrible patch jobs resulted in the door popping open so much, my wife had to sit in the back to close it every time. We stopped at an overlook and I adjusted it again which did fix it for the remainder of the trip.

Our goal for the day was the Mattole Campground on the edge of the Lost Coast. More bad roads led us to the turnoff on Lighthouse Road which would lead us to camp. This road also started out ok but turned to mud/gravel about halfway through with one large puddle/mudhole to traverse before we hit the coast. Mattole has no reservations and only 14 sites but we figured in February we would have a good chance of snagging a site. Turns out there were only two other campers there so there was no issue. We arrive kinda early, around 2:00, which as nice as my wife could rest a bit. We did explore a little and walked part of the Lost Coast Trail before returning to make dinner and sit by the fire.

We were treated to one of the best sunsets we have ever seen on a camping trip. This remote, hard to get to campsite was all worth it for these pics right here.

The wind picked up and a light sprinkle started so we retired to the van, turned on the heater and watched some downloaded Netflix before calling it a night.
Day three:
We woke up to a light rain and cloudy skies. We felt bad for the group who had come in late that night in their tents as we drank coffee in our van being warmed by the Espar. We stayed in the van and watched a bit more Netflix while eating breakfast before deciding it was time to head on. We had no real destination for the day besides heading north to be home by Monday evening. Back on the now muddier Lighthouse road for a slow drive back to Mattole road. We went through the small town of Petrolia and along the coast for a bit:

As the road left the coast it began to climb and climb. We were able to maintain second gear but with the roughness of the road, it wasn't easy. Parts of the road were washed away and replaced with gravel which added to the excitement of the climb. We drove through a small valley then the road climbed again. This time it was a first gear grunt up the mountain with switchbacks right out of the Alps. With the fog, it all made for a surreal view.
Here is a clip my wife did with her phone (excuse the sniffing/coughing)

Link


A bit longer one showing the climb out away from the coast. I am trying to remind my wife to hold the phone sideways but it didn't happen on these.

Link


Then one of those weird travel encounters happen. We were driving up this road in the middle of nowhere and we see a big blue Westy coming down the hill towards us. They flashed their lights and we all stopped in the middle of the road
to meet. I had seen the van before on Instagram and it was Shane's old Westy he sold before moving to camper life and then back to building his syncro. These were the new owners from Colorado and they had just moved out to Cali. I
didn't get good pics but hoping they send me some to put in this report. What a crazy meeting in the middle of nowhere.

Back to the climb, we finally crested and made our way down to Ferndale. We had been several times before so we just moved on north.

We drove up 101 and remembered that about a year ago went saw this funny emu near the drive through tree near Klamath. We decided to stop and see what he was up to but this time he was pretty chill and not running around. We fed him a bit and moved on.

We hit Brookings, Oregon and pulled over to see about camping. We pulled out our trusty iOverlander app and looked up the coast for some free camping. A promising site popped up with a bunch of reviews and showed it to be a bit private with a view of the ocean. Score! Headed north for about an hour and found this gravel road that went behind a stand of fir trees separating us from highway 101. Found a great, level spot and popped the top.

About 30 min later a Dodge Promaster van pulls in and kinda drives around a bit deciding if they wanted to stay. We waved them over and they parked about 150 feet away. A single traveler came out and asked if it was ok that he camped near us. Of course! Another like minded traveler to share stories with? I'm in. He and has dog made camp and my wife and I enjoyed the sunset over the ocean.

We made vegetarian chili for dinner and made way too much so we invited Kyle over to share our dinner, warm fire, and a cider. He was happy to have the company and we stayed up pretty late sharing stories until our propane ran out and it got pretty cold. As I have said many times in our trip reports, the people we meet make the journey. iOverlander has brought many new faces into our lives that we still stay in contact with today.
Turned on the heater and off to bed.

Day four:
No real pics of today as my wife was pretty sick and we just went up 101 north then over to I5 for the blast home. Traffic was still good being a holiday and we were home in no time.

Another great trip and the Westy did amazing. The heater has been a wonderful upgrade and we look forward to our March camping trip which should be a spring break adventure with the twinzers. Maybe back to Canada for a few days?

You can follow these adventures in real time on my Instgram
nate_baldwin

nate
_________________
1987 Westy
Insta: @Thatbaldwinlife
Vanagon Adventure and DIY videos:
That Baldwin Life YouTube Channel

[mikemtnbike]

That's fantastic, as always your reports are greatly appreciated. Thanks goldtooth!
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual

[VicVan]

Very nice report! Thanks for sharing.
_________________
'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[JimmyJagged]

Great picture story. Thanks for sharing.
The Redwoods are my most favorite destination!
_________________
Current:
1971 Tin Top Weekender Bus
1973 Squareback
1985 Pop Top Weekender Vanagon (my 19yo son's first car. father/son project)
1985 Pop Top Weekender Vanagon w/ 2.5 Subaru

Past:
1976 Rabbit diesel (my first car). RIP. totaled by drunk driver (not me!)
1973 Pop Top Westfalia Weekender Bus. RIP. Blown engine due to 25yo ignorant of VW maintenance (me).
1986 Vanagon Transporter. RIP. totaled by drunk driver (not me!)
1987 Vanagon Syncro. I never should have sold.

[dobryan]

Nice. Thanks!
_________________
Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[joetiger]

Thanks so much, Nate. What a great companion to my coffee on cold, snowy morning. Can't wait to get out!
_________________
Joe T.

'86 NAHT Vanagon GL Syncro/ supercharged ABA 2.0 "Pigpen"
'04 GTI 1.8T
'04 Golf R32

"get metaphysical with it. if it's simply a means to get to and from places, it will let you down. if it becomes your zen, it can't fail you." -dabaron

"Still, it's good to be afield."--VWagabond

Available Now! Vanagon to Louisiana--A Two-Lane Reckoning Through Past and Present

www.josephtrussell.com

[erste]

Looks like a great trip and reminds me that I need to get my aux heater working again. When I came back from Descend last year I took HWY 1 from Oregon down until 128 when I finally had to cut over to 101 to make up some time and actually get back home. Love the drive down the coast and could take two weeks doing it.

I was really tempted to take that road (Mattole Rd.?) out but it was going to add a lot of time and didn't make sense for a day trip detour. Nice to see what it's like.

A few months ago I went back up to the Lost Coast with my mom and we stayed in Shelter Cove. The road there is no joke. It's paved and windy and not really bad, but it felt like it just dropped straight down to sea level at one point. Really hard on the brakes and reminded me of Teton Pass.

The terrain in that area is pretty awesome, I can't wait to go back. Thanks for sharing.

[dhaavers]

Love it! Beautiful trip report...thanks!

- Dave
_________________
86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[dabaron]

glad you were able to make the trip!

you make me want to move to Oregon. i did some of the coast highway in 2017 in a rental car, i would LOVE to do it in my Westy. this confirms my desire.
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[Sodo]

[thatbaldwinlife]

[Squidfish]

Very cool report! My neck of the woods Wish it would have been clearer for you driving up and over the Wildcat Rd into Ferndale, the views of Point Mendocino are amazing!

I just met John the other day with the blue high top too. Nice guy!
_________________
1985.5 - Vanagon Westfalia Weekender Wolfsburg Edition - LH8U - "Penny"
- 2.6i 5-Cylinder 10v (2004)

[4Gears4Tires]

Beautiful trip!
_________________
'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition

[Abscate]

Glad you got away for each other for a few days. Thoroughly enjoyed the trip report and pictures.
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.ssS!

[thatbaldwinlife]

[Slimvest]

Great stuff.

I love hearing other peoples' vans on bumpy roads. Hearing the rattles of another 30yr old vehicle, I feel better about the rattles and vibrations my van makes on the rough roads.
_________________
'87 GL w/ Reimo top

[thatbaldwinlife]

[shadetreemech]

Made the trip North through the Lost Coast last September.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=725793&highlight=driver+dan

Got to relive part of it reading your Trip Report. Nice account, great pics & videos. Thanks!

Happy Trails & Best o' Luck!

Dan
_________________
'84 GL 1.9
'01 Volvo V70 T5
'88 Westy - "MZDRTHY"

[jimf909]

Goldtooth and shadetreemech provide some of 5e best trip reports ever.

I’d love a monthly installment from goldtooth.
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- Jim

[thatbaldwinlife]